LONDON – When King Charles III visited France in September, a lavish dinner in his honour at the Palace of Versailles featured champagne Pol Roger Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill.
The choice was a boost to the 175-year-old family-owned vineyard, one of nine champagne makers that enjoy special status as official suppliers to the British royal household. Their royal warrants allow them to display the coats of arms on bottles and the “By appointment to...” label, as well as reap the financial benefits that can come from the endorsement.
While some producers have held their warrants for more than a century – Queen Victoria first awarded one to Champagne Bollinger in 1884 and to Champagne Lanson in 1900 – all of them could lose the highly coveted designation. By Sept 8, the second anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, King Charles is due to communicate which of the 800 or so current holders across all sectors will have their status renewed.
While the 75-year-old monarch has cancelled his public engagements as he receives treatment for an unspecified form of cancer, he will continue “state business and official paperwork”, Buckingham Palace said on Feb 5. A representative of the Royal Warrant Holders Association, which acts as an intermediary between the purveyors and the royal household, confirmed the review process “is ongoing” but declined to give any details.
Lanson, Bollinger and Louis Roederer are among the champagne maisons, or houses, that have applied for a renewal. Luxury giant LVMH, which holds warrants for its Krug, Moet & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot labels, declined to comment on whether it had sought a renewal, as did a Pernod Ricard SA spokesperson about the warrants held by its Mumm champagne and Dubonnet fortified wine.
“The royal warrant is a big part of our history and a strong symbol,” said Ms Julie Renault, head of marketing and communications Lanson, whose biggest market is Britain. “It’s a guarantee of quality and for us it’s very important.”
Compared with other alcohol labels, the champagne houses hold an outsize number of warrants and a loss would come as a blow to at least some of them, especially at a time when the market has softened. Exports of the sparkling wine made in the Champagne region east of Paris dropped 8 per cent in 2023.
Warrant holders also include multinational food brands like Coca-Cola, Heinz, Kellogg’s and Nestle. British fashion label Burberry and luxury carmaker Bentley also enjoy royal favour, along with a broad swathe of smaller businesses like butchers, tailors, a chimney sweep, and producers of umbrellas, candles and horse bedding.
In Britain, warrants raise the profile of holders and confer bragging rights, although publicising them is restricted. In a study in 2023, brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance said the warrants would deliver £212 million (S$360 million) in economic benefits for the financial year based on the estimated commercial value that holders collectively place on having them.
Brand Finance managing director Richard Haigh in an e-mail said: “Royal warrant holders benefit from the strong brand equity associated with the royal family. This establishes greater awareness and prestige, and grants them access to markets and consumers they may not otherwise reach.”
The champagne makers make up a third of all producers of alcoholic drinks on the list, dwarfing makers of gin, port and beer and even outnumbering the five Scottish whiskies: Famous Grouse, John Dewar & Sons, Johnnie Walker, Laphroaig and Royal Lochnagar.
The choices reflect what is served during official functions and the tastes of the late Queen, who was reported to drink a glass of champagne every evening. In 2021, she granted a royal warrant to Dubonnet, which when mixed with gin and lemon was reputed to be her and the Queen Mother’s favourite cocktail.
Since Queen Victoria brought champagne to the royal court, some of the French houses have knit close ties with Britain, which would make any loss of a warrant particularly disappointing. Overall, Britain was the sector’s largest export market in 2022 after the United States.
Bollinger has been James Bond’s favourite bubbly since the 1979 movie Moonraker, thanks to an agreement between the family owning the vineyard and the one with the film rights. This has helped make Britain its biggest foreign market.
In the case of Pol Roger, Churchill struck up a friendship with family member Odette Pol-Roger at a post-war lunch in Paris and named one of his racehorses after the brand. The champagne house created its premium Churchill cuvee in 1975.
King Charles first granted Laurent-Perrier a warrant in 1998. He visited the vineyard as a young prince in 1979 and was given the right to give out the distinctions in 1980.
The application process for renewal is long and complex, requiring all kinds of business details with a particular focus on sustainable agriculture, waste management, worker protection and supply chains, according to representatives of champagne makers, who asked not to be identified out of fear of harming their chances.
The King has long been a supporter of sustainable farming, and some of the champagne brands holding warrants, including Louis Roederer, display the designation prominently on their websites. BLOOMBERG
